Fangirls, for many a year, I’ve been buying beauty products; razors, shampoo, soap, all of that is necessary for keeping a body clean and fresh. But often, for women, it’s more expensive to get those products. The other day, Nerdy Lipstick and I were walking through Target so I could grab some razors, and she suggested I go to the men’s area to avoid the “Pink Tax.” I had never heard that phrasing before, but I instantly knew what she was talking about.

“The Pink Tax” is exactly what it says; a tax on things pink. Things like razors, shampoos, deodorant, and even some soaps, tend to be more expensive because they are for women specifically. A quick search of Target’s website, and the razor example is shown perfectly. A four pack of women’s disposable razors a $5.39, while a five count of men’s disposable razors is $4.99. The brand is the same; “up & up,” one of Target’s store brands.

Crazy, right? Men’s razors are usually just as good as women’s, if not better. They are meant for face shaving, so they can still move to the contours of your legs without messing you up. So why are they so much cheaper?

To be fair, it isn’t just Target that’s using this unfair system, it’s everywhere. On Walmart’s website, I searched for body wash, and found some very similar results. Dove has a two-pack of body wash for women priced at $6.88 for two 14.5fluid ounce bottles, while Old Spice has a two-pack for $6.55 for two 18 fluid ounce bottles. Now, these are owned by different companies; Unilever owns Dove and P7G owns Old Spice, but they’re still selling more product for less money.

It’s a bit ridiculous, isn’t it? To be totally honest, I’m not certain what we can do about this. We can write letters and articles, make unhappy tweets, and complain to the companies involved (that would be Target, Walmart, Unilever, and P&G in this article alone, so far), but how does it help us? There is no guarantee that prices will even out more. So until then; buy non-gender specific items. At Hannaford (the local grocery store here), Dial soap is sold for $2.49 for a three pack. It doesn’t look catered to one gender or another, and is incredibly inexpensive.

So you can buy items that look genderless, and let the numbers show that we want less expensive items without gender, or you can just go with whatever’s cheapest. Or make your own (be careful, making soap can be difficult, and possibly dangerous). Whatever you do, make sure that you are aware of the Pink Tax, and don’t let it take all of your money.

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